SPRINGTIME FOR SPRINGSTEEN?: Tickets for Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band's first two shows in the New York area will go on sale tomorrow morning. I want to see this tour, having never seen Bruce before, but I won't be on the phone tomorrow because I know they'll be adding more shows later on and I might have a better shot then. But even more importantly, I'm not so happy with how this process has happened. Aside from the litany of anti-Ticketmaster complaints, I find it rather upsetting that Bruce's tour was announced five days ago, the for-sale date was announced four days ago, and the tickets are on sale in one day. This leaves fans very little time to get their shit together in terms of ordering tickets- if they even hear about the for-sale date in the first place.
Even worse, the tickets are not available at in-store outlets, but rather only by phone and internet. This in fact punishes hardcore fans, like those willing to camp out overnight for tickets (as my uncle did in Michigan to see the last E Street tour, in '84), and rewards those who press "redial" enough times and are lucky enough to get through in the ten minutes before tickets sell out. Whatever; if I'm not able to get tickets for this go-around I may just until next year, when the band returns from Europe to do a spring- and summertime tour.